How Dare You
by niidqethjot
Summary: When the Bog Burglars come to visit, Hiccup is reunited with his friend Camicazi, but she is a little miffed with him.


Hiccup shifted his weight to his good foot impatiently as the sea's horizon remained excruciatingly empty. He and his father had been waiting at the docks for close to an hour searching for signs of the Bog Burglar ships that were due to come in that day.

"Why can't the Bogs ever come on time," Hiccup groaned as he scanned the ocean for the hundredth time. "I mean, shouldn't timing be important to a tribe that makes its living nicking items when people aren't looking?"

"They'll get here when they get here, son," Stoick said placatingly. "Why are you so anxious about it?" he asked, casting his son a questioning look.

"I'm not anxious," Hiccup shot back quickly. "It's just…" he fumbled for the right words. "We couldn't go to Bog Island last year because of that freak storm. So now it's been close to two years since I've seen Cam-, any of the Bogs.

Every year, the Bog Burglars and the Hairy Hooligans took turns traveling to either Berk or the Bog-Burglar-Islands to cement the friendship and solidarity of the tribes. These meetings usually involved lots of competitions between the Bogs and Hooligans, ranging from drinking to fighting, all in the name of good tribe relations. Hiccup normally wouldn't care much for this type of gathering, seeing as how he disliked drinking, fighting, and competitions, but they did have one upside.

"You're nervous about seeing the Chief's daughter? I thought you two were friends," Stoick asked, genuinely confused.

"We _are_ friends, and I'm actually really excited to see her again," Hiccup insisted.

"But…" prompted Stoick.

It was true; he was looking forward to seeing his best friend Camicazi again. Hanging out with her was really the only thing he enjoyed about these gatherings. In the past, she had really been his only friend, and the yearly meeting was the only chance he got to spend time with someone his own age who liked him for who he was.

Hiccup sighed. "But it's been two years, and a lot has changed." He glanced back towards the village just in time to see a group of villagers shoot into the air on the backs of several Nadders and Gronckles led by Astrid and Fishlegs. "A whole lot. Frankly, I'm just not sure how she'll react to all that's happed and everything I've done since I saw her last."

"That's why you're nervous? Because you ended the war with the dragons?" Stoick exclaimed, laughing at his son's unwarranted nerves. "Son, you know as well as I do that she'll be just as impressed as the rest of the Archipelago is. She's probably boasting to the other Bogs right now about how she's best friends with the 'Dragon Conqueror' and singing your praises."

"Oh yeah, because that sounds just like Camicazi," Hiccup drawled. His dad clearly had never spent much time with the Bog heir. Camicazi, while she was Hiccup's best friend, never showed she was impressed in such obvious ways. Her "praises" would most likely sound more like '_Not bad, for a boy of course,_' followed by a challenge to a swordfight to prove that she was still the best.

"It's not so much that I'm worried she'll be unhappy with the defeat of the Red Death and the integration of the dragons, it's more-"

"Chief, ship spotted on the horizon!" came a shout from the watchtower.

Both Hiccup and Stoick turned their heads back towards the water, and sure enough, there was a ship coming steadily towards Berk.

"Well, you'll get to see her soon enough," Stoick said simply.

* * *

As the Bog ships finally docked in the harbor and the Vikings started mingling about, Hiccup found himself swiveling his head all around trying to spot a mess of blonde hair that would signal his friend's arrival. He saw his father chatting with Big-Boobied Bertha a ways away, both of them already challenging one another to a drinking contest, but no sign of her daughter.

Just as he was starting to worry that she might not have come, Hiccup felt a tap on his shoulder. He whirled around and instantly recognized the short blonde Viking before him.

"Camicazi! Hey! How…how are you?" Hiccup stammered out in surprise. Although he had last seen her two years ago, Camicazi was still very much the same, with her wild hair and short stature. The only real difference was that instead of the excited demeanor she usually displayed upon seeing Hiccup, she instead stood calmly, her eyes not meeting his but instead examining the blade of her sword.

"Oh, I'm fine. Things have been rather calm on the Island recently, what with the drop in dragon raids," Camicazi replied coolly. "Haven't had much use for this in months."

Hiccup waited a moment for her to continue, as Camicazi was usually rather chatty, but it soon became clear that she had no more to say on the subject.

"Well…that's good right?" Hiccup replied, realizing that his apprehension had apparently been well warranted.

"Oh yes, very good." Camicazi shot back, continuing to check her sword for imaginary nicks.

Hiccup sighed, resigning himself to his fate. "Okay Camicazi, let me have it," he said miserably.

Her eyes instantly snapped to his. "Okay then," she said, finally coming to life. "Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third, I cannot believe you!" she exclaimed, punctuating her words by lightly poking him in the chest with her sword.

"I don't see you for two years, and all of a sudden I start hearing stories about some 'Dragon Conqueror' on Berk who made peace with the dragons!?" she continued angrily, occasionally swinging her sword uncomfortably close to Hiccup. He shrunk back to try to escape her wrath, but she merely followed him forward.

"I knew it had to be _you_ because there is no one else crazy enough to try that and actually succeed!" She paused for a breath, and Hiccup tried to interrupt, but she continued on as angrily as ever.

"But when I find out the details, I find out that you trained a Night Fury, learned how to fly on it, led a group of Vikings against the biggest dragon ever seen, and-" Camicazi flicked her sword so it was millimeters from Hiccup's nose. He gulped, praying to the gods that her diatribe would be over soon.

"And you never once thought to invite me?!" Camicazi shouted, looking towards the sky and throwing her non-sword hand into the air. She then looked at Hiccup and narrowed her eyes dangerously, as if challenging him to deny any of it.

"Look, Camicazi," Hiccup quickly interjected, trying to stem her tirade before it went any further. "I understand that you wanted to be at the battle with the rest of us, and believe me, there is nothing I would have like more than to have my best friend by my side as I took on the most terrifying thing I have seen in my life, but…I was kind of in a time crunch. You see, most of the village was on the way to the nest, and if we didn't get there soon-"

"Oh I already knew that" Camicazi said briskly. "But you apparently had that dragon for weeks before it came to that. How come you never thought to tell your best friend that you had a dragon then?" she demanded testily, although she did finally lower the sword.

Hiccup furrowed his brow. "How was I supposed to tell you? You were all the way on Bog Island."

"You had a _dragon._ Your Night Fury could probably make the trip in a few hours, tops. Why didn't you just pop over and say '_Hey Camicazi, guess what. I have a dragon!_' It would have been better than me finding out from Trader Johan's rumors," she said glumly, slightly calmer than before.

Hiccup smiled. "I'm sorry Camicazi, I know you wanted to be included on this adventure, but Toothless actually couldn't fly when I first found him. Most of those weeks were spent trying to get him back in the air. Otherwise Bog Island would have been my first stop, I swear."

Camicazi huffed, sheathing her sword and placing her hands on her hips. "Well…I guess it makes sense when you put it like that, but you still never told me anything afterwards. It's been months since the incident and we still only heard about it through the Archipelago gossip mill."

Hiccup winced. "I…don't really have a good excuse for that. I _really_ am sorry. Still friends?" Hiccup asked tentatively, sticking out his hand.

Camicazi glanced at it before breaking out into a broad grin. "I guess I can overlook it," she said, grasping his hand tightly. "After all," she continued in an awed voice, "what you did- training a dragon, flying on its back, taking down the biggest beast Vikings have ever seen… it's incredible! For a boy of course."

Now it was Hiccup's turn to smile, glad that his best friend was no longer angry at him. "Of course."

"But if you think you can get out of telling me every last detail, you're crazy," Camicazi said, slinging her arm around Hiccup's shoulder. "I want to know _everything_, and I mean everything. Starting with who I can blame for that," she said, gesturing at his left leg.

"Oh, well, that wasn't really anyone's fault, besides the Red Death's I mean." Hiccup replied. "It was just kind of…unavoidable."

"Unavoidable my bum. If I had been there, it wouldn't have happened," she stated matter-of-factly.

"I haven't even told you how it happened," Hiccup shot back, happy to have his chatty friend back.

"Don't need to. I know I would have saved your helpless behind somehow. I _am_ a Bog after all."

"Uh huh. Sure."

"Don't doubt me Hiccup," she said threateningly, moving her hand toward her sword.

He let out a hearty laugh. "Wouldn't dream of it."


End file.
